Tatum, Brown and Smart combined for 89 of Boston's 108 points as Brown went for 22 and Smart had 21. Definitely a signature game for the Celtics and for Jayson." You love to see JT come out aggressive and carry us offensively like he did forcing Game 7. "It was a big-time performance," Brown said. Jaylen Brown has been around for plenty of big games by Tatum, but he knew this one carried a little bit more weight. My teammates say that to me all the time. "I had to come set the tone," Smart said. Smart started the game like someone who wanted to forget his last game as quickly as possible as he had 14 points in the opening frame while shooting 4-of-6 from deep. "I'll just say tonight will be the first night after that game that I'll get some sleep," Smart said. He said immediately following that game, he went to the practice facility to get ready for Game 6. Smart played a big role in the Game 5 loss, getting blocked by Jrue Holiday and getting the ball stolen from him by Holiday in the final 10 seconds. We believe in each other and I think it showed tonight." Knowing that we still had an opportunity to save our season to come in here and get a win. "Everybody had a bad taste in their mouth. "I think just kind of how much it stung losing that game like that," Tatum said. Tatum said the collapse of Game 5 was on the minds of all the Celtics down the stretch. And with 2:38 left, Tatum converted an old-fashioned three-point play to put the game out of reach. With 5:40 left, he nailed another deep trey to push the lead to eight. Boston's next time down, Tatum showed off his footwork to hit a one-legged fadeaway. When Milwaukee answered with an acrobatic layup from Pat Connaughton, Tatum answered with a 3-pointer. We put it to bed the next day and look forward to getting back to the Garden."Īfter the Bucks closed it to 85-81, Tatum responded with a midrange jumper as the shot clock ticked down off an out-of-bounds play. But never any doubt or hangovers from that game. "Everyone was pissed about that outcome, but we knew how well we played throughout the series and let some things slip away. We felt good going into it because we played so well for three and a half quarters. We let an opportunity slip away but still had a chance to make it a better story, I guess. Boston coach Ime Udoka said he told his team to not get stagnant in the fourth quarter as they did a game ago and continue to go on the attack. Milwaukee cut the lead to as little as four, but whenever the Bucks had momentum going, the thought of what happened in the previous game started to creep into the collective minds of the Celtics' bench. On Friday night, the Celtics again held a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter but made sure to leave with a different outcome. In Game 5, the Celtics held a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter and were up six with two minutes to play before the Bucks snatched away a victory. The best-of-seven series is tied at three games apiece. That's what we that's what we lean on him to do." I was telling him the whole game, just be you man. "That's why he gets paid the big bucks," Celtics guard Marcus Smart said. Tatum scored 28 of his 46 points in the second half, including 16 in the fourth, as Boston held on for a 108-95 victory at Fiserv Forum. That wasn't the case on Friday.Īs the Milwaukee Bucks made a push in the fourth quarter, Tatum seemingly had an answer at every turn. Two nights prior, the Boston Celtics had a prime opportunity to take control of the NBA playoffs semifinal series but let Game 5 slip through their hands. MILWAUKEE - Jayson Tatum wasn't about to let it happen again. You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserīoston Celtics' Jayson Tatum drops 46 points in 'signature game' to force Game 7 in NBA playoffs semifinal
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